The team from Academic Technology demonstrated XR (eXtended reality, an umbrella term for VR, AR (augmented reality), and MR (mixed reality) technologies to the students in Prof Sara Allen’s CMM107- Media and Culture II class on Thursday, Nov 18th. A total of 25 students in two class sections came to the XR Lab in LSB403 and donned Oculus Rift 2 headsets to experience VR (virtual reality) for themselves, many for the first time.

Most students played a game called Beat Saber to get a feel for what VR is all about and some common remarks describing what everyone was feeling were “awesome!”, “amazing!”, “wow!”.

Hedrick Ellis, Endicott’s Coordinator of Instructional Technology and Immersive Learning has been evangelizing with Deans and faculty on the benefits of using XR across the curriculum. Some of the programs that have already adopted VR technology into their curriculum include Nursing, Architectural Studies, Anatomy and Physiology, Biology, Athletic Training, and several athletic team coaches.

Students try out the Oculus Quest in Endicott’s XR Lab